A Spartan's SOLACE
by F o N t E. AQUA
Summary: Lieutenant, I cannot keep my promises that ALL your squad members lived. You cannot either. But... I believe you can live up to fulfill a mission. Remember what I told you about the perfect soldier? It seems that today is your lucky day.  -REDITED. GAH.-
1. Say my name, Lieutenant

**A/N: **Yes.. I know I know. I haven't updated for A LOT OF TIME. But I forgot to publish this story. It was a continuation of Halo: Reach. I may continue, I may not. D: This will feature Noble 6 fighting along with John-117. Storyline of Halo with Noble 6 in the picture, basically. I wanted him to live. Also, Kat and Carter survived in THIS story. **AU, I think. It is AU!**

Emile and Jorge didn't survive. Pfff. I loved Emile but... Noble 6 saw him die. Same for Jorge. Others witnessed Carter's death. I made a poll in school on who should live and Jun is exceptional. Jun IS the survivor (SPOILER SPOILER) and yes, he lives. Catherine Halsey? Well, I'll try to think what her image is in my story. Expecting reviews from you guys!

**ENJOY.**

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**...:Prologue:...**

**SAY MY NAME, LIEUTENANT**

It was over now. There was nothing he could do now. The Covenant calmed down for a while, and the only thing he did to ward them away was to pretend to be dead. He laid flat and motionless on the floor, trying hard to ignore the pain in his open wounds. Slowly, but surely, the Zealots and Ultras left him alone. The Spartan still had his hand on his battle rifle, in case there was anything else that was almost blowing his cover. The Spirit - a Covenant drop-ship - flew away in a purplish giant blast. The loud sounds died down and the engines of a space cruiser came into focus of the scenario.

Noble 6 craned his neck to view the cruiser just a small inch; he managed to get a good view despite his poor vision. The cracks in his helmet didn't make him feel bad. He wanted to die now. Die by losing blood while witnessing the planet being glassed. UNSC ships and drop-off vehicles were fleeing from the scene. Nobody was there to save him now. The other Spartans died, he saw many but couldn't remember what happened at all. Whatever it was, the Covenant scarred his heart.

Jun was alive. He was with Catherine Halsey. Dr. Halsey was alive too so he must be alive with her. Also, that Gunnery Sergeant Buck whom he met in Alexandra had survived before the city was glassed. The three of them had the chance to live. If it wasn't for Noble 6, they would have died. If he survived, then... Noble 6 managed a small, painful smile. Those three were lucky to survive the ordeal and Noble 6 had already sent the 'Package' to the Pillar of Autumn. He was dying now. Perhaps he can use a few seconds of his remaining time to live since there was no orders left for him now.

Using his hands as support, Noble 6 lifted himself up from his lying position and sat on the brown, musty and dusty ground. His eyes shot up at the wonderful yet deadly beam of light destroying lands. The cause of the glass, or one of the causes. The Covenant had ruled Reach; the planet was theirs now. Noble 6 looked around to find no more Covenant infantries tracking him. They thought he was dead and he was going to be-

_"Lieutenant! LIEUTENANT!"_

A loud voice attracted Noble 6's attention. The Spartan head turned in every direction possible, trying to find the source of that call. Unbelievably, a Phantom - a friendly contact at least - flew towards him. There was a soldier waving at the open shutters, a familiar sniper rifle in his hand. The soldier's head was uncovered to reveal the bald head and a tattoo featuring arrows on his head. Noble 6's eyes were bloodshot and he couldn't trust what his mind had addressed the soldier as.

"Jun?" Noble 6 couldn't help but pull a hopeful smile. He expected Jun to say a goodbye and be the last person he would meet again. But that wasn't what the sniper did. Jun leaned back into the Phantom and gave a few signals. The Phantom automatically lowered down, its shields intact and no turrets manned. Nobody was there to be conspicious of the Phantom. Only the cruiser was a few kilometers away and it didn't care.

Jun jumped off the Phantom and landed with a thud. He raced towards Noble 6 through all the dust that churned and covered him like a blanket. Noble 6 struggled to stand up by himself only to see Jun throwing his arm around his shoulder. Jun lifted him up with a grunt and turned to make a quick sprint back to the Phantom.

"I'm not gonna make it, Jun. P-put me down," Noble 6 breathed, begging Jun to stop. His friend wouldn't stop at all. He only had the motive to bring Noble 6 to safety. When they reached the Phantom, Noble 6 turned his head around. The Ultras and Zealots were coming back. They saw Noble 6 and Jun. Noble 6 begged again, "Please. You don't have to save me."

Sadly, Jun shook his head and laughed bitterly, "Say that to Dr. Halsey and Captain Keyes, Lieutenant."

Without another word, Jun threw Noble 6 like a club, flinging him into the operative gravity lift. Noble 6 could see and feel himself floating up, ascending through the air until he reached the insides of the Covenant drop ship. Jun then looked back and saw the Zealots and Ultras roar with fury. They threw their energy swords aside and whipped for their concussion rifles. Jun made a turn and jumped into the gravity lift. As he made his way up, he called a command, "Corporal! Get us out of here, NOW."

Noble 6 could hardly think properly. Why was he saved? He was supposed to be dead, with the others. His team didn't seem to die at all. Spartans never die, right? Noble 6's limbs barely functioned and he couldn't move a fraction of an inch. Two marines sprang onto him with medkits. They covered his view, but Noble 6 blacked them completely.

_Say my name, Lieutenant._

"W-What...?" Noble 6 muttered. It was a female voice. However, there was no female presence in the ship. He swore he heard it. The familiarity hinted his knowledge. Noble 6 tried to sit up but the marines pushed him down. The first marine, on his left, reassured him, "Don't move. Your bones are broken, sir."

_Can you hear me? Say my name. You're chosen are you, Spartan? If you are, then you must know my name._

He did know the name but he could bring himself to say it. He was so confused that his voice cracked. Jun rushed over and snatched the helmet off Noble 6's head. Noble 6 had his eyes shut tight as he winced in complete pain. Jun tried to calm down, "You're going to be A okay, you hear me, Noble 6? Please respond!"

_You do know my name but you cannot say it. Go on, say the name of who made you strong. Of who made your own squad strong. _

"Doc...Ah..." Noble 6 gritted his teeth. He said only a portion of the name he was about to finish.

_What was that I hear? You have your memory intact, Lieutenant? Say my name to show that you do._

"Doctor... Ha-"

"Vital signs are low, sir!"

"Keep her steady, Corporal! Noble 6, are you alright?"

"Doctor... Hals-"

_Just one more syllable, Spartan. One more and you'll survive. The rest of your crew will too... but not all of them. I cannot keep my promises and nor can you. Say it, Lieutenant. Say it, I beg of you._

Doctor Halsey.


	2. Priority: Reuniting Allies

**A/N**: Yes, I'm continuing! Thanks for all your reviews because I needed them. The story will just be like Halo CE storyline but with a plot twist. Since there is a factor that is Noble 6, Noble 2 and Noble Actual there will be bound to be a twist and a turn. Minor characters will DEFINITELY have screen time too. I'll also answer questions from your reviews instead of the PM inbox thingy.

_Mineral-Tears: Thank you! Lightbulb? Well, I have to admit Spark is quite stubborn, not to mention sentimental. Anyway, thanks._

_Lemon squeezy x (anon): The storyline will change, do not worry. Yes, it's quite strange to find Noble 6 living but that's exciting to hear, right? I also can't wait to write the upcoming chapters._

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Captain Keyes' eyes narrowed. He took the pipe in his hand and blew a small ball of smoke. The following crew members on the bridge were clicking and typing vigorously. A blaring siren filled the bridge, however, Keyes didn't mind about that. He was much more concerned about something else. They had escaped from the Covenant but only for a temporary amount of time. The image on the screen - a rotating ring - greeted him with a puzzling feature. The giant object near the _Pillar of Autumn_ spun gracefully, revealing the inner surface to be made of ocean and earth. The outer surface was covered with patterns of artistic geometry. It seemed like a creation humans couldn't hope to build. Although he didn't suspect there were humans on it, there had to be a controlled population on that ring.

And he needed _them_, including himself, to land on it. Keyes asked in a commanding tone, "Cortana, you're saying that the Covenant are already here before us?"

"Yes, Captain," A female voice responded calmly and briefly, "The Covenant are always faster than us. In a few minutes or so I will activate the main cannon. The Covenant will be all over us by then."

"And the Spartans? How are they?" Captain Keyes turned his head in a 90-degree angle to see the violet AI folding her arms in an upright posture. She had a soft smile on her face and her body brightened with mathematical symbols. "Noble 6 has sustained serious injuries but our crew has indicated that his vital signs will eventually go green. Needless to say, he's one hyper vector. As for Noble One, his conscience kept him running. The bio-foam we used was enough to satisfy his needs... hopefully. He never hesitated to bring himself back to full speed."

"Go on," Captain Keyes was slightly interested in the Spartans' conditions. Cortana continued, "Noble 2 is currently waking up from cryo sleep right now. I've checked through her status and... it was alright. Jun commented on her injuries as a huge jeopardy, not to mention that Noble 2 did suffer quite a headache. Don't worry, her memories are still intact and she should be fine. Her new set of armor shouldn't have shortened circuits with the number of glassings passing around in Reach. There are still so much information about those two but I wanted to give a brief explanation. Noble 1 will be assisting her and both will join us in the bridge any second now."

The information made Keyes nod in relief. At least they had four Spartans left. He couldn't imagine what the outcome would be if John was the only Master Chief. He said, "Bring them up to the bridge immediately."

He turned to view the screens in front of him and later stopped. "They don't know about the ring, do they?"

"No sir. I assume you're wanting to show them that ring?" Cortana gave a smirk. She also had to admit, the sight was beautiful. Someone built this ring and she wanted to know who the creators of the ring were. It drew everyone's eyes to it. The artificial object hovered near Threshold, the large bluish planet that the ring orbited around. The ring itself was a satellite and she herself also wanted to see what it was like on that satellite. It was like... a halo. A halo from the heavens was spinning serenely.

Captain Keyes chuckled, "Of course."

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**:...A Regular Family Reunion...:**  
**0648 hours, September 19, 2552 (MILITARY CALENDER)/**  
**UNSC Pillar of Autumn, Epsilon Eridani System**

"He's hot! Blowing the pins in five!"

Noble 6 gazed at the frozen Master Chief with curious eyes and a concentrated study. It was a long time since he had never seen the best Spartan. He wondered where his three teammates had gone to; Jun never told him about their whereabouts. Noble 6 considered his presence in the UNSC ship to be acknowledged by the Captain. However, though, he thought why he wasn't killed back on Reach. Was he supposed to be with Master Chief? Did that AI choose him to be with Master Chief? There were still so many questions left unanswered and there was too little time. Also, he had to have the Pillar of Autumn crew fix up a new set of Mark V (B) POWER-ASSAULT armor for him to use. They also made a few new additions to the armor, making it look pretty smart and professional. Noble 6 didn't care about his armor being ruined by additional changes. All he wanted to know first was why he was chosen by that AI.

Tech. Officer Shepard appeared at the door and he walked over to the cryo tube. He nodded at Noble 6, causing him to step backwards to allow the officer to stand in front of the tube. The tube cover automatically and slowly lifted itself. Gusts of cold air escaped from the holes in the tube.

"His suit shows green. Cycle complete."

The green-armored Spartan's head shook, and he tilted it to find Shepard and the expectant Noble 6. Noble 6 observed the Spartan and instinctively gave a salute. The scars and plasma burns hinted John's superiority. He was even taller than Noble 6, judging by the height in the cryo tube. So was that Spartan the perfect soldier Dr. Halsey told him? Sierra-117, was it? Noble 6 felt a sensation of obedience and respect for the soldier; even if he was higher in terms of rank. Master Chief, or John, looked quite dazed and drowsy from the sudden thaw. His limbs were numb, especially his arms and his vision took time from a blur to a clear.

Shepard saluted, "Sorry for the quick thaw, Master Chief. Things are a little hectic right now. The disorientation should pass quickly." Tech. Chief Marcus upstairs waved at the woken Chief and said through the comm., "Welcome back, sir. We'll have you battle ready stat."

"Chief, please look around the room. I need to get a calibration reading for your battle suit's diagnostics." Shepard said, looking through the control panel near the cryo tube. John looked around until he stopped at Shepard.

"Good. Thank you sir," Shepard pressed a few buttons before Marcus said, "I'm bringing your health monitors online, sir." Health bars soon appeared on John's HUD. All looked full and blue and he felt quite fine. Noble 6 waited; he could feel the patience in him stirring. Tests were always carried out step by step. He also planned to see how the effect was if the Master Chief would join into the fight. Shepard looked up and his positive voice said, "Vital signs look normal. No freezer burn. Okay sir, go ahead and climb out of the cryo tube."

Able to stand up, John pushed himself up with his arms at the tube. Noble 6 could see how tall he was now. Buff and husky, his body size in his MJOLNIR armor was much more than he expected. John hopped off with ease, looking at Noble 6 then at Shepard. Noble 6 couldn't see the face under that helmet, sadly.

"I gave you a double dose of the wake-up stim. Take a quick walk around the cryo bay and join me at the optical diagnostics station when you're ready." Shepard waved his hand dismissively, and walked away. Noble 6 went over to John who was cracking his neck and let out a hand. He greeted, "Noble 6, Chief. I was told to work with you from now on."

John took the hand and shook it firmly. Talk about a warm welcome; Noble 6 tried to clutch it harder. John was from the Spartan-II program, one of the most advanced soldiers in the military. Noble 6 was only a 'disposable'. Still, he made the best of it. He heard the first words John spoke, "Acknowledged, sir. It's good to work with you."

His voice was husky and low, the type that almost matched Jorge's tone. Before Noble 6 could reply, Shepard beckoned John to come over. The Master Chief strolled to the Tech. Officer where he was told to stand in a square with a red border. John then looked at Shepard's eyes with readiness. Shepard nodded, "I know the ordnance techs usually take care of your targeting sensors, but we're short of time, Chief. Just look at each of the flashing panels to target them. When you lock on, it'll change color."

There were four panels - each in the color of orange. John looked up at the first one at the top, causing it to automatically turn green. He then looked left, right and bottom, giving the same results. Noble 6 noticed that John didn't quite like the pitch. "Ok... That looks good-"

"Sir, I'm getting some calibration errors. I'm going to invert your looking pitch, so you can see if you like it better that way." Marcus interrupted, jabbing a few keys on his pad. The pitch was inverted, and he continued, "Try looking at the panels again."

The Chief repeated the same test and now he was satisfied. "Is that better or should I switch it back?" Marcus asked. John turned his head at the window where he could see Marcus and shook his head. He let out a low 'no' as a decision that he wanted this setting to remain.

"OK, I'll leave the pitch normal/inverted. But if you want, you can change it yourself later..." Marcus hovered his fingers at the keyboard and returned his attention to Shepard and John, "I'm ready for the energy shield test now."

Shepard understood and faced John, "Please follow me to the energy shield test station." He left for the station with John trailing behind. Noble 6 took the time to lean at the exit doors, waiting for the Chief until his test was done. He watched John step into another square with a black-yellow border. He then heard something through the comm., that ran through a speaker. It was nonetheless Cortana, the AI that chose him, "_Fire teams: Report to defensive positions Alpha through Sierra. Sensors show inbound Covenant boarding craft. Stand by to repel boarders._"

"Dr. Halsey...?" It sounded like Halsey as the AI was like a fragment of her mind. He was then startled for a second when he heard the charging blast at the station. The Chief's shield meters increased until it was full, thus completing the first step and half of the test. John felt an overwhelming feeling as though he felt protected by a non-living barrier.

Marcus said, "Alright. Shields read as fully charged."

"Okay, sir. Bring them down to test the automatic recharge." Shepard told Marcus. Noble 6 then gazed at John, where the large object around him swirled, causing his shields to fall. John winced, but soon the shields recharged again. Marcus smiled, "Recharging normal. Showing green across the board."

Suddenly, there was a short white noise in the comm. before a familiar voice blared, "_Bridge to Cryo 2, this is Captain Keyes. Send the Master Chief and Noble 6 to the bridge immediately._"

John and Noble 6 exchanged glances. Captain Keyes, were their only thoughts. Keyes' voice sounded like a hurry and he needed them to report to the bridge. Shepard frowned; it wasn't the end of their tests yet. He tried to differ by saying, "Captain, we'll have to skip the weapons diagnostics and I-"

"_On the double, crewman._"

Shepard sighed, but he finally talked, "Aye aye, sir." He turned to the Chief and raised his shoulders. "The skipper seems jumpy, we'd better get moving. We'll find you weapons later. Lieutenant? I think you'll have to come with me too."

"OK," Noble 6 nodded. He then looked up at the window pane where Marcus was. Marcus was still typing at his computer but he said reassuringly, "Okay. I'll leave the self-diagnostics running, at least. Just have to reset the computer and I'm outta here!" However, though, a loud banging sound went into repetition at the door farthest from him. It was the Covenant; they were trying to get in.

Marcus cried, "Oh god! They're trying to get through the door!-" An explosion rattled Cryo Two, and the door flew, missing Marcus by a hand's length. An elite major jumped in, immediately pushing a few shots of plasma at the Tech. Chief. Marcus tried to shout through the comm, "Security! Intruders in Cryo Two! No, please don't—" The Sangheili managed to have a bolt of blue plasma hit Marcus, causing him to fall over.

"Sam? SAM?" Shepard cried in fear, before looking at Noble 6 and John with horrified eyes. "C'mon, we've got to get the hell out of here!"

He opened the door after hastily punching a few keys, "This way!" The door opened and Shepard raced out. He turned to his left and sped for a second door. Noble 6 and John sprinted after him in the corridor, only to back away in hesitance. Shepard glanced at them with a confused face as he pressed a few keys. Suddenly, as if again, an explosion detonated and the doors flew open, killing Shepard instantly. Both Noble 6 were at first shocked but John saw a few pipes and an opening. He shouted, "Over here!"

He jumped over them, and Noble 6 followed him. They ran through an accessible door where a thinner pipe was losing gasses. It exploded again, and fire licked the air around the burnt pipe. John and Noble 6 dodged the fire and through another door, where they faced a blast door unable to close fully.

They both bent down, crawling out of the opening to find crewmen struggling to repel the incoming boarders. Pistols snapped loudly and yelps of the men echoed in the corridors. A crewman in a red jumpsuit yelled, "Behind us! They're right behind us!"

"Secure those blast doors! Move! MOVE!" A marine shouted loudly, aiming his assault rifle at the crewmen before the Covenant. He pulled the trigger and fired a few bullets at the aliens, knocking some of their shields out to buy some time.

A few crewmen responded to the marine's call after noticing a few grunts closing in on them. They ran away with heads down, to get through the blast door that was slowly closing. One unfortunate crewman had his face slapped by a vigorous waving tube, gas blowing in his face so hard tears formed in his eyes. Noble 6 quickly ran to the helpless crewman and grabbed his arm, pulling him through the small gap in the blast doors. The man shielded his eyes but he thanked the soldier gratefully. John beckoned at Noble 6, telling him to hurry.

The two Spartans advanced forward, heading into a short hallway after going through the door marked 'BRIDGE'. They came through another door, meeting a familiar enemy. The minority turned behind and let out a yelp of anger.

An elite - probably from the Minor class - pointed its plasma rifle at the two, ready to fire. Both Spartans were unarmed so they planned to tackle the elite to the ground before escaping. John was about to knock his eager fist into the elite's face when someone yelled, "Sir! Step aside! I'm going to fire!"

Two marines whipped out their assault rifles. They instinctively punched a burst of rounds at the stunned elite, causing the alien to cower and flee. The elite fled to a room and by the time it reached to middle of the room, the doors behind it quickly closed, trapping the minority inside. The first marine who called the Spartans made a fast salute, "We'll take care of these. Lieutenant, Chief, get to the bridge double-time!"

Both Noble 6 and John could hear Cortana ordering teams to repel the Covenant. Cortana, through the comm., tried to reach everyone quickly, "Enemy boarding parties on starboard decks Eight through Ten. Echo Team, intercept Covenant! Alpha and Charlie Teams report heavy fighting on port decks Five through Nine. Foxtrot Team move to starboard decks Eight and Ten, and stand by. Reserve Combat Teams Oscar and Romeo to port decks Nine through Eleven!"

Noble 6 waited until John got past him then followed behind. They, again, ran into another corridor with crewmen and additional marines struggling to fight off incoming hostiles. One of the marines with a die-hard face saw the Spartans. He was standing on the floor that had the paint which said 'ARMORY' and he crisp saluted, "Private Dubbo, sir! Captain Keyes needs you on the bridge ASAP! You need to follow me!" He made a turn and sprinted, looking backwards at any event if they weren't catching up.

However, John and Noble 6 were directly behind Dubbo. Noble 6 and John looked around to find multiple marines either wounded, or even dead. Some of them tried to hold on to their lives before they collapsed to the ground, panting and praying to live. John and Noble 6 could only feel sympathy and ran on, once again finding more enemy hostiles trying to get into the bridge.

Dubbo couldn't contain himself and had to pierce his ammunition through the Covenant's shields. He then ran into the hallway marked 'BRIDGE' and turned a sharp left. He stopped and turned around to face the two Spartans.

"Captain Keyes is waiting for you sir," Dubbo rested his assault rifle as his sides and watched as Noble 6 and John walked ahead. Each of them walked different directions: Noble taking the left and John taking the right. Noble 6 then met Kat and Carter talking while watching the large ring through the big window pane.

He went to them before Carter could turn around. His forehead was covered by a clean white bandage that was smudged with red spots. Kat looked quite unharmed but her face hid the grimace that was longing to escape. Carter smiled wearily at Noble 6, "Glad for you to join us, Lieutenant. You had a good nap?"

Carter noticed how Noble 6 was staring awkwardly at the pair. He laughed bitterly, "We're fine, actually. It took a hell of a time for Captain Keyes' crew to fix us up." Noble 6 only shrugged.

"I have to admit, the sight was... fantastic," Kat said softly, admiring the structure of the ring. The same question almost all had winked in her eyes. Noble 6 was curious to find a ring orbiting around Threshold.

"A ring?" Noble 6 started but Carter just nod in response, not giving a brief explanation of the unknown object. John and the others had already reached Captain Keyes who turned back rather slowly. Disappoint and regret filled his eyes. He still took Noble 6's hand and shook it, before heading to John's hand. He sighed with a short smile, "Good to see you, Master Chief, Lieutenant. Things aren't going well. Cortana did her best, but we never really had a chance."

By the next second, Cortana's avatar appeared on the holotank. Her magnificent violet and small figure didn't quite calm the three Spartans down, except for John. She closed her eyes and folded her arms, "A dozen Covenant superior battleships against a single_ Halcyon-class _cruiser. Given those odds I'm content with three...make that four kills."

"You pack a punch on the cannons, ma'am?" Kat asked feeling impressed. Four kills Cortana obtained, eh? She couldn't imagine an AI doing all the work. Cortana gave Noble 2 a flattered and complimented face. Looking at Noble 6, Cortana remarked, "I sometimes preferred you without those additions."

Noble 6 took a look at his body. Were the additions already too much? It wasn't worse than Jorge, though. Cortana then faced John, and smiled with slight devotion, "Sleep well?"

"No thanks to your driving, yes." John said rather coolly. Noble 6 didn't feel anything when he was in cryo sleep. Perhaps he did feel a slow rocking motion but... it was probably his imagination. Cortana smiled with content and chuckled, "So you _did_ miss me."

John was going to nod when an explosion rattled the bridge. Carter and Kat had to hold on ground for support whereas Noble 6 almost fell. John 6 only shook for a moment before going back to a straight posture. Keyes grabbed the pedestal for support, the pipe in his hand almost slipping out. The lights in the bridge flickered before returning to online mode. Everyone, including Cortana, was shocked by the sudden outburst.

"What the hell?" Carter gasped. He grabbed Kat's arm to help her and himself up, "Did they flank us?"

Kat coughed, "I don't know! Whatever it is, I don't think it's good!"

"_Agh!_ Report!" Keyes gritted his teeth. Cortana could only hope for the worst. Her calm face turned to a terrified one, saying, "It must have been one of their boarding parties! I'd guess an Antimatter charge!"

Only a few meters away the Fire Control Officer turned his head and shouted, "Ma'am! Fire control to the main cannon is offline!" This wasn't good at all. It wasn't a good sign either. Where was the spot the Covenant didn't reach or maybe breach? She didn't have any other back-up plans left at all. Cortana's eyes widened, and her head took a split second to face the Captain with worry, "Captain, the cannon was my last offensive option."

Captain Keyes bit his lip, and kept his mind cooled down. He took the pipe in his hand and grinned grimly, "Alright then. I'm initiating Cole Protocol, Article 2. We're abandoning the Autumn-" He pointed his pipe at Cortana and finished his sentence, "That means you too, Cortana."

Cortana didn't quite accept Keyes' decision. "While you do what, go down with the ship?" She asked in doubt, thinking that he was going nuts.

"In a manner of speaking: the object we found, I'm going to try and land the _Autumn_ on it," Captain Keyes continued on, pointing his pipe stick at the view screen, at a particular part of the ring. He wasn't joking at all; he meant to land the ship on it. It was his only last chance to escape the enemy for an acceptable amount of time. Cortana frowned, and she tried to protest, "With all due respect, sir, this war has _enough dead heroes_."

Carter nodded, agreeing with Cortana. "Our Spartans, we couldn't give the chance to let more good soldiers die again." Jorge and Emile died, he couldn't even admit the fact he cried. Kat could understand; almost everyone knew that the war had to stop losing heroes of every kind. Keyes shook his head - even he himself knew how to differentiate right from the wrong. Still, he differed, "I appreciate your concern, Cortana, Noble 1, but it's not up to me. Protocol is clear: destruction or capture of a shipboard AI is absolutely unacceptable, that means you're leaving the ship. That will also be including you, Carter."

"... Affirmative, sir." Carter resigned, and Captain Keyes commanded, "Lock in a selection of emergency landing zones, upload them to my neural lace, and then sort yourself for a hard transfer."

"Aye aye, Captain." Cortana said finally, before her avatar disappeared in a fade. Keyes turned his attention to the Chief and Noble 6 and said with a reassuring face, "Which is where you come in, Chief. Get Cortana off this ship. Lieutenant, assist the Chief and be his back-up. Whatever the Covenant does to get its hands on our AI, you'll be there to stop them.

"Keep her safe from the enemy. If they capture her, they'll learn everything," Keyes almost lowered his volume to almost a mumble, "Force deployment, weapons research... Earth."

John nodded with his orders and both he and Noble 6 said, "Understood."

"Noble 1, you'll go with Noble 2 to defend starboard decks Four. The security teams might need some help. You can leave the ship with them when you're done warding off as many Covenant as you can. Take out those who got near to decks Seven to Nine and regroup with Team Victor." Keyes said to Kat and Carter. Cortana's avatar reappears again, and her final steps were complete. She still felt reluctant to be yanked. There were still some requests from the stations needed to be fulfilled. In the meantime, she had to leave the ship. Cortana told Keyes, "The _Autumn_ will continue evasive maneuvers until you initiate a landing sequence.-" She put a hand on her hip and held her other hand as an emphasis, "Not that you'll listen, but I'd suggest letting my subroutines handle the final approach."

Keyes seemed just as satisfied as hell would have been. He put his hand at the keypad but paused. Having to ask Cortana, he said, "Excellent work, Cortana. Thank you. Are you ready?"

Cortana looked around the bridge for a moment. The crew members ran to their friends' seats and tried to keep the Autumn steady. If she were to be offline then the whole ship would collapse in a minute or so. Sighing, she lowered her head and muttered a soft, "Yank me."

Pressing a few keys, Keyes went to the holotank and pulled out a chip from it. The chip was precious; it contained Cortana inside. He gave it to John, who took it without hesitating. The chip was indeed small but it held a lot of importance. Keyes smiled at John once again, trusting the Spartan with all he could, "Good luck, Master Chief."

Noble 6 watched John as he slid the chip into his helmet through the small thin opening. There was a small spark at the opening at first, then John smacked the back of his helmet to ensure that the chip was inside. Cortana commented while inside John's helmet, "Hmm...your architecture isn't much different from the _Autumn's_..."

"Don't get any funny ideas." John frowned.

Noble 6 then remembered something. He asked Keyes quickly, "Sir, may I ask where is Noble 3, sir?"

"Jun, you say? He's currently at port decks Nine, helping to ward off boarding parties."

Keyes was about to dismiss the Spartan group until he had forgotten something. Taking out a pistol, he handed it over to John. "I don't keep it loaded son, you'll have to find ammo as you go."

"Thank you sir; I'll be off," John nodded his last nod and walked away from the Captain, only to run shortly after he stepped out of the bridge. Kat, Carter and Noble 6 sped after him though they were unarmed. Three grunts appeared in the corridor where Dubbo shot off a few waves of infantry. They jumped in surprise and aimed their plasma pistols at the four Spartans.

John didn't take the chance to fire his pistol. Instead, he grabbed a yellow-armor grunt's head and forced it into the wall, crushing the alien's soft brain. Carter immediately followed in cue by using his foot to trample the other grunt's head. He picked up the last grunt by the backpack and threw it to John who quickly rammed the helpless being into the wall. Kat, Carter and Noble 6 all took the grunts' plasma pistols, checking to see if the weapon system was online.

Then, the door leading to the cafeteria – or mess hall, in military terms – opened. A dead marine was present at the door; a sign that said the facility was invaded by the Covenant. John was the first to take the assault rifle sitting beside the dead man. He whacked it to push the loose clip inside and darted his eyes to figure out the situation. He then ran in, seeing allies fighting off alien parties with their available weapons. Noble 6 jumped and rolled, only to miss an overcharged plasma shot that could have knocked out his shields. Kat returned the favor by overcharging her plasma pistol and releasing a huge ball of green plasma back at the shooter.

A grunt yelped but the plasma had already hit its head. It collapsed, dying instantly. Sergeant Major Avery Johnson spotted the four Spartans. He panted, "We could use a help over here!"

Carter nodded firmly at Noble 6 who responded with a thumbs-up. Noble 1 and six jumped over a table. Carter grabbed for a dead elite major's plasma rifle. A second after he did that, he then shot a few blasts at a charging minor elite to destroy its shields.

_"Teams on decks Seven and Eight, fall back to secondary defensive positions." _ Keyes said through the comm., in an urgent tone. Noble 6 then took Carter's plasma rifle while listening to Keyes' command and kicked the elite in the chest, forcing it down and enabling himself to kill the alien with a burst of bullets. John charged towards a group of huddled grunts, knocking them down with a side kick. He then shot them down with five pistol rounds, silencing them.

Kat traded with a marine for his shotgun who just shrugged. She then ran towards the last of the elites, shoving the shotgun into its stomach before sending it off with a bang. The elite went flying from the impact and hit the wall, probably dead.

When the area was clear, the four moved to another corridor. Carter spotted an assault rifle lying around and threw it at Noble 6. The Lieutenant managed to catch it before they head out to meet an elite major guarding the hallway. The alien also tried to kill one of the marines who threatened to eliminate it. John crept up behind the elite and snatched its neck, cracking it and breaking its collarbone. The elite moaned in pain before it fell, not given the chance to know what had happened behind him.

The first marine, named to be Corporal Jones, saluted when he saw the four superior Spartans. He started to make a compliment but an explosion rocked the ship. It interloped in the beginning of the sentence, and he cried, "What the hell? Laurence, did something just hit us?"

Laurence responded with a shout, "Move it! Back to the airlock!"

The group hurriedly ran to the corridor where two marines were guarding the airlock. They suddenly flew, from a plasma explosion caused by a Covenant boarding vessel. A whole squad of aliens poured out; ready to invade the facilities they were told to go to. Carter then raised a hand signal, saying, "We'll take care of these bastards. Go, Chief, Lieutenant. We'll rejoin when we all land on that ring."

"Roger that," John agreed and fled from the homicidal Covenant. Noble 6 sprinted after him, assault rifle in hand. They had to get to a vacant bumblebee escape pod.

For some reason, Noble 6's vision blurred. Were the drugs he was given as treatment giving him strange side-effects? It could be his mind playing tricks on him. He could still run behind John but he couldn't concentrate well.

_You see that ring? It's not normal._

It was that voice again. Noble 6 blinked continuously. Both he and John were now trying to fight off a wave of grunts and three elites. It seemed that his body was doing all the talking. He was fighting but he couldn't feel anything. _  
_

_You're going to land on it. You're going to be in big trouble._

Big trouble? In what sense landing on a ring was big trouble?

"What big trouble...?"_  
_

_You see... that ring is not just a satellite. It's a weapon.  
_


End file.
